Recent incidents involving Haitian workers in the Dominican Republic
should alert even the most jaded observers that an already very serious
human rights problem is getting worse.

A confluence of factors - a rapid succession of executions in the last
few months, arrogance and defiance from Dominican government officials,
institutions and citizenry vis-a-vis the plight of Haitian workers,
the shameful indifference of the Haitian government, and the relatively
superior economic and military position of the Dominican Republic - has
created a pre-genocidal atmosphere that raises the specter of the 1937
mass murder of tens of thousands of Haitian immigrants.

Sonia Pierre, the director of the Movement of Haitian-Dominican Women
(MUDHA), an association to defend the rights of Haitian-ancestry
Dominicans, was quick to advise us during an interview on WBAI's
"Haiti: the Struggle Continues" not to view the sensational May 2
beheading of Carlos Nérilus as a unique event since executions of
Haitians are far from rare occurrences. Shortly after that
Jim-Crow-like lynching, we heard about beatings, chases and the
torching of buildings that house Haitians after one of them was accused
of attempting to rape a 15-year-old Dominican girl.

What is alarming about these events is the rapidity, spontaneity, anger
and brutality with which Dominican mobs react to rumored misdeeds of
Haitians. This points to a deep well of prejudice and hatred, fed by a
negative, stereotyped view of Haitians. It also denotes the distorted
self-image and misconceptions some Dominicans have about their cultural
and racial differences with their island brothers. Some of these
opinions are typical anti-immigrant resentments: Haitians are stealing
jobs, depressing the price of labor, etc.. Other sentiments, evoking
fears of the proverbial "barbarians at the gates" and of Haitians
changing the DR's supposedly European and Christian culture, stem from
century-old events and a misunderstood history. They are emotional and
even visceral - and therefore more explosive and dangerous. Haitians
are considered as the "enemy" who deserve their lot and who should be
punished whenever Dominicans deem it appropriate.

Dominican government pronouncements feed this xenophobia. They not only
deny any mistreatment of Haitians but accuse Haitians of fomenting
violence. Haitians, they say, should then be thankful that Dominicans,
more than any other nation, give them aid and succor, a Dominican
version of Rudyard Kipling's "white man's burden."

In 2005, the Dominican government reacted rabidly to the decision of
the Inter-American Court of Human Rights that children born to Haitian
parents in the Dominican Republic should be given full citizenship
rights as Dominican law prescribes. It claimed that there was an
international conspiracy against the Dominican Republic. Similarly,
Haitian Prime Minister Michelle Pierre-Louis' mild protest over
Nérilus' decapitation received vigorous rebukes from both President
Leonel Fernandez and the archbishop -- the DR's putative moral
leaders. The Dominican police and judicial authorities are not only
conspicuously silent but also take part in massive abuse and repression.

One of the reactions to Pierre-Louis' whiny protest was that she should
have toed the line set by President René Préval, who refused to
denounce the beheading and stated that the case should be left to the
Dominican authorities. There could be no better signal to Dominicans
that they can do as they please with Haitians.

The Haitian embassy and consulate have not defended the rights of
aggrieved Haitian workers nor given them even minimal assistance.
Haitian Ambassador Fritz Cineas, a fixture of the Duvalier
dictatorships, gained greater notoriety last year by stating that
Haitians are "well-treated" in the Dominican Republic. This comment
came just as international human rights organizations were protesting
against the slavery-like conditions that prevail in the bateys
(sugarcane plantations). The Haitian government has yet to represent
its people with the dignity and respect our history dictates.

The Nérilus incident struck a chord in Haiti, where there were protest
marches and rallies, a welcome change from the usual resignation or
apathy. Many petit-bourgeois Haitians ignore the plight of Haitian
sugarcane cutters, who come from either the poor peasantry or the
slums. In the feudal caste system in Haiti, such working-class people
are considered disposable sub-humans. Some well-to-do Haitians are
proud to trumpet how often they go on vacation in the Dominican
Republic and spend their money, oblivious to the abject situation of
our compatriots and enthralled by the great "development" of our
neighbor. Haiti's moneyed class feels no remorse in taking profits
reaped in Haiti and investing them in the DR, claiming that the
situation is too unstable at home - an instability and precariousness
many of them helped create.

The lopsided exchanges between the two countries cannot be blamed
solely on frivolous and unpatriotic Haitians. It stems from an economic
imbalance between the two nations. To a great extent, our elites have
failed to coordinate their strengths to ensure that Haiti made the
advances it needed to compete. Also foreign powers, especially the US,
have invested much more to our east, for many reasons that we might
explore in another exposé. When a middle-class citizen sends his
children to the other side of the border, it is not necessarily for
lack of nationalism. To a point, his decision is dictated by the
poverty of our school system and by his economic incapacity to send his
children to a more advanced society.

Reports coming from a recent meeting between the businessmen from both
sides of the "isle" have shown that the yearly volume of transactions
reaches about US$600 million, with Haiti getting about $50 million. It
increasingly seems that the imbalance is encouraged, if not designed.
The Haitian economy is being made dependent on the Dominican by our
elite's lack of patriotism and because of transnational traders' heavy
investments and property rights in our neighbors' economy. Most free
trade zones - i.e. tax-free sweatshop havens - are set up in the
Dominican Republic.

In a particularly brazen statement, Haiti's Tourism Minister Patrick
Delatour recently proclaimed that the Citadel (Laferri re) is the
heritage of the whole Caribbean and that Haitians should not be
bothered that Dominicans are using it as a tourist attraction, as if it
belonged to them.

Delatour's comment comes not only from a lack of patriotism and
historical understanding. Haiti's political and economic elites kowtow
to the Dominicans because, through them, they can better prostrate
themselves before the ultimate master, the US. How then can we expect
the Haitian elite to defend their compatriots in the bateys? They do
not feel threatened. The racists are only going after one type of
Haitian so far...

To paraphrase the pastor who spoke of German complacency as the Nazi
holocaust unfolded: First, they came for the sugar cane cutters, I did
not see any danger; then they came for the construction and domestic
workers; I did nothing because they did not look like me, too black ,
too poor. Then, they came for the students...

The preconditions for a mass murder of Haitians are being set in place
in the Dominican Republic. Century-old prejudices and hatred are being
stoked by the press and some officials. The Haitian government is in
denial and practices the politics of appeasement. The bourgeoisies are
in cahoots. The international powers are making profits they do not
want to lose by upsetting the source of cheap labor and the subservient
political regimes. We, Haitian patriots, and progressives of both
nations, are the only ones willing and able to stop a process that
could culminate in a repeat of the island's most horrific chapters, a
human disaster with unpredictable consequences. Beware!

We, a group of concerned Haitians, are very disturbed by the
appointment of William Jefferson Clinton as the Special U.N. Envoy to
Haiti. We, like most Haitians, want UN occupation troops to leave Haiti
immediately. Haiti has been a sovereign nation for 205 years and needs
no supervision. We would like to obtain from you a clear statement of
the mission former President Clinton is expected to accomplish in Haiti
as United Nations Emissary. Is Mr. Clinton going to use his leadership
and charm to end Haiti's occupation or to reinforce it?

Mr. Clinton's record as president of the United States of America is
not auspicious. The condition of people of African ancestry in his
country did not see a net improvement. The jobs he said he created
required a person to hold at least two to make ends meet. He considers
one of his accomplishments the return of President Aristide, who was
elected with a majority never attained by a U.S. president yet
overthrown by a U.S.-backed coup. However, Aristide was returned with
an army of occupation and an imposed agenda which would never have
allowed him to take his people out of poverty.

Mr. Clinton has made it known that his foundation is already in Haiti
serving in the areas of health care (AIDS), environment and economic
development. He prides himself on having brought garment factories to
Haiti. But where is the actual benefit to the country? Should we expect
Mr. Clinton to provide Haiti with more of these jobs with miserly
salaries that have never, up to now, lifted any citizens of any country
out of poverty?

Haiti might be the most impoverished country in the Western Hemisphere
but it is not the most violence-ridden. Nevertheless, Haiti is occupied
by a U.N. force which is not able to stop drug trafficking, murders,
rapes, kidnappings, or even political persecution.

Mr. William J. Clinton also seems to think that he is the one "suited"
to tell the Haitian people who shall be their leaders. We would like to
remind him that he is designated to be the emissary to a nation, not
its Prime Minister!

If the United Nations and its controllers were serious about improving
the condition of Haiti, the country would be provided with electricity
in less than a year. Tools would be provided to the peasants who
definitely can and want to cultivate their land and produce enough food
to feed the entire country. Haiti has mineral resources which can and
should benefit the country, not enrich foreign multinationals. These
areas can create meaningful and enduring jobs for the citizens of
Haiti. Will Mr. Clinton tackle these issues?

Mr. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, we would like to have your answer to these very important questions in a public declaration.